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Spring is the time of the season that we begin testing skis and boots for the following season. Here are some key reasons why we stress testing now opposed to the summer time:

Snow: When testing products you should test it on a condition that is most similar to what you will be racing on during the season. This all revolves around the feel of the ski or boot. Depending on the condition you will find that there can be differences that will/can eventually add up to a time difference in the course and that can be the separation between you winning or losing.

Tune: Having the ability to test multiple different brands of products with the exact same Start Haus tune. This will result in you being eliminate the tune as being a variable in the test and making it easier for you to feel exactly how the ski feels.

Product: Ultimately you are testing skis or boots to see if you are faster than other brands. When you have the ability to test multiple different skis or boots in one day you are easily able to determine the differences between brands. This is easy because the snow conditions are the same, tune is the same and now the only differences will be product.

These three key elements are all necessary components to an effective test and deciding which brand is the best performing ski or boot for the athlete.

Ski camps will be taking place over the next few weekends through the Squaw Valley Race Program and Sugar Bow Ski Team; both camps will be open to all other programs as well. If you have any inquiries regarding these camps please contact Start Haus at 530.582.5781 or comment here and we will be happy to assist you the best we can.

For Tahoe spring races, there are some consistent tricks for speed. Our Spring snow changes from 1st run to second run; and there is dirt, oil, tree sap as well as pollen mixed into the snow. We are also dealing with some dusting’s of new snow. You will need to use some form of antistat to keep the dirt, oil and tree sap from adhering to your wax mix. Graphite plays a key role in the performance of your antistat thus why we also carry high fluoro graphite to use as an additive to any base wax. The best is Start Haus Warm Antistat by Dominator or Dominator FG88 or SRB32. These should be rubbed on the dry base before you iron your wax in. It is also effective to mix these antistats with your overlay to help repel dirt.

Several years ago, a couple reps, company execs, and sponsored skiers were sitting around a dinner table celebrating the success of a new prototype that would revolutionize the way they made skis. The idea was born out of a frustration with rocker technology, which makes skis playful, but also instable and nervous. Ever the tinkering skier, Arne Backstrom proposed a solution that was simple, yet so profound, it should be written down in the ski book of Zen: Build the ski upside down.

Blizzard-Tecnica unveiled their upcoming 2012/2013 lineup for the first time in California and Nevada before an audience of Tahoe skiers and ski industry leaders at a launch party in Squaw Valley. Like last year’s line of Blizzard skis, next year’s models all embrace Flip Core technology, which was inspired by Backstrom and flips the ski’s wood core upside down so it naturally takes on a rocker shape. Incorporated in the Cochise to the Bodacious to an entire new line of woman’s big mountain skis and beyond — thirteen models in total for 2013 — the genius of Backstrom’s idea is that it can be applied to an entire line of skis, not just one pair. And on Tuesday night, there were many converts in the crowd who now believe in Flip Core.

“If I’m going to sell a product to a friend, I have to believe in it,” said Robb Gaffney, who first skied the Cochise prototype three years ago at Kirkwood, and now skis them nearly every time he goes out. “The first run, I believed it. The second run, I believed it more … He [Backstrom] knew what he was talking about.”

Ski writer Jackson Hogen noted that Blizzard isn’t just on the map, it’s leading the charge with its new technology. “They made it [Blizzard] the most important brand in skiing now, because it’s the reference brand,” Hogan said. “It’s all deserved because it’s product … These things aren’t pixie dust. There’s math involved.” Not just math, there was a curious person who was in tune with his equipment.

“A lot of it came down to this drive to understand how things worked,” said Ralph Backstrom, Arne’s younger brother.

Arne Backstrom was at the top of his skiing career when this idea came forward. And at that dinner table on that fortuitous night, the Blizzard-Tecnica crew was not only celebrating the success of the prototype, but also Backstrom’s skiing career. He had just won the first McConkey Cup and was filming with Matchstick and Warren Miller. It was that night that Stefano Mantegazza, Blizzard-Tecnica product director, proposed that the Bodacious become Backstrom’s signature pro model ski.

“It’s not a tribute,” said Clem Smith, sales rep for Blizzard-Tecnica, about the Bodacious. “This was always his deal. It wasn’t an afterthought.”

Backstrom passed away just as the first line of Flip Core skis went into production. Right before he left for Peru to ski the Cordillera Blanca, Backstrom signed his name five times — a true perfectionist — on a piece of paper that he left with Smith. That signature is now on every pair of Bodacious skis.

“Arne was a man of few words,” Smith said. “But when he spoke, everyone listened.”

New this year from Blizzard is a women’s big mountain line of Flip Core skis, including the aggressive Blizzard Dakota ski, which is the female version of the Cochise. Tecnica is also coming forward with another line of boots inspired by Backstrom’s infamous Frankenboot. The 2012/13 free mountain boots feature interchangeable soles, a walk mode, and can be skied aggressively in bounds or in the backcountry.

“It’s rare to see an athlete have this much inspiration in a global brand,” said Dana Greenwood, sales rep for Blizzard-Tecnica. “It’s got Squaw DNA … [Backstrom] knew it was a good idea, but he never would believe the impact worldwide that he would have.”

Nothing is better than waking up and seeing 2 feet of fresh at lake level or the valley floor; especially this season! We’re all pretty comfortable with the light and fluffy stuff but sometimes when the “Pineapple Express” hits, the fresh snow can be dense and heavy. How do you approach these types of conditions? Here are three tips to help make your day more enjoyable if its not as light as you hoped:

1. Allow your skis to plane out of the snow, you may need to aim straight down the hill or at a diagonal to get some speed built up. It will help keep your skis on the surface.

2. Steer your feet and legs progressively, spend just a little more time in the fall line than what your instinct directs you to do. Big, aggressive twisting moves will bog you down and throw you off balance.

3. Shrink your turns to go slower and stretch out your turns to go faster, read the terrain and scope out your line, so you know where you will need to make adjustments to maintain fluidity and control.

And don’t forget to check out our selection of powder skis, all designed to make powder skiing easier and more fun with wide widths, rockered shapes and easier flex patterns: Shop Powder Skis

The MX 88 is the ski that single handedly built the formidable reputation of the Kastle brand. Some brands may have a ski model that become a hot seller for one year, but almost invariably, they feel the need to tinker with it and change success. Fortunately for all concerned, Kastle does not work that way. The Kastle MX 88 has been the flagship of the collection since its inception, has not really changed at all and yet it still sells out early every year. There are some very good reasons for this with the primary one being the construction and feel that sets Kastle apart from other brands.

Most ski companies tout their technology and construction and of course they should. A lot of times the new “whiz bang” tech that is “going to change everything” is just smoke and mirrors. With Kastle it is a different program. Kastle utilizes design and construction techniques that give their skis a unique and highly desirable feel, they tune the build and flex for the target customer, put on a fairly simple elegant graphic and then……they leave it alone. It is a plan that works pretty well for them since the skis sell out early every year despite being some of the higher priced models on the market.

The MX 88 falls right in the middle of the width range for today’s all mountain skis. There are a lot of skis in this range of course with some being biased toward soft snow and some biased toward hard snow. Then again, there are some that have about an evenly weighted conditions bias and these tend to be the most versatile in our opinion. The Kastle MX 88 is among the very best in this width range on hard snow and yet, I tend to rank it with only a slight bias on the hard snow side. The reason that I give it only a slight bias toward hard snow is because despite being a fairly stiff ski, it is quite good in other conditions as well. Kastle manages this by producing a ski that is stiff enough torsionally and has such good dampening that it will hold on anything short of a watered down racecourse. Yet for a ski with all that power it feels lighter and more nimble than one would expect and it is even reasonable in soft, mixed conditions. A combination that is grippy and powerful yet light and nimble at the same time has been one of those unobtanium deals in the ski industry but Kastle has managed it. The Kastle MX 88 will have many differing applications depending on where and how you ski. This is a ski that would make an awesome one ski quiver for any Eastern or Midwestern skier and could still be great fit for a Western guy that skis off trail a bit but doesn’t live there. This is a ski for someone with developed skills, and does require some strength and or speed to generate turn initiation. The MX 88 is not a ski that I would normally recommend for an intermediate skier.

Dynastar has been a major player in the race world with many Olympic and World Championship medals as well as World Cup titles in their long history. This racing pedigree really shows in the Dynastar Speed Course TI. The Course TI wears race graphics, carries a racing binding plate, and shares the wood/metal construction characteristics of the World Cup skis. Despite this, it is in fact a pretty different animal than a pure race ski. A wider waist width and rounded tail are the first visual clues that this is not just another race ski. The Course TI has a tight 15m turn radius in the 171 size and it is available in sizes as short as a 159 and as long as 183. This is a very good dual event race ski for non-FIS level competitors and also makes a great “cheater” GS ski for Masters racers. The Speed Course TI is even more than this though. This is a very good ski for someone that doesn’t race at all and is looking for a hard snow biased ski for everyday use.

The first runs I took on the Dynastar Course TI was at Winter Park during the annual SIA intro. The main test run there is an FIS homologated GS trail and has very hard snow most of the time. The upper part of the run is relatively narrow and has a moderate pitch. I used this part of the trail to vary turn shapes between short medium and long radius and then back again. The tapered tail released much more easily than the grippy, squared off tails that you find on real race skis these days. Through this exercise the Course felt amazingly comfortable and compliant through changing turn shapes and the turn release was energetic but manageable. As the trail got steeper it also gets wider and in this section of the trail, I opened up the turn radius and picked up the speeds. While the Course TI is easy enough at slower speeds, it really stands out when skied aggressively. The grip was like a razor even on the spots that were scraped off and shiny and the dampening was on par with a World Cup GS ski. The tighter turn radius kept the ski from running out at the turn finish the way a GS race ski would and when I took it out to the edges of the trail it managed the soft crud very well. For the skier or instructor/coach looking for a hard snow specialty ski, it doesn’t get much better or more versatile than the Speed Course Ti.

It is important to maintain a centered stance over your skis to work the skis effectively. While standing on your skis on flat terrain, try moving your body forward and backward over the skis by using the ankle joint as hinge. This is how we want to re-center our center of mass over the skis. The goal is to maintain a perpendicular relationship of body to the skis. When approaching steep pitches it is natural to move your weight back because you are hesitant and maybe a little nervous. Unfortunately when this happens, you lose the ability to direct and work the ski effectively. You may find that you are suddenly going faster than you want and may be heading out of control. When skiing steeper pitches, concentrate on keeping your body perpendicular to the hill by hinging the body forward through the ankle joint, especially at the start of the turn. This will help to apply pressure on the front of your boots with your shins. The pressure on the front of your boots is conveyed to the tips or your skis and will allow you to control your skis with more precision. Skis are designed to perform best when strong forward pressure is applied to start the turn. It is amazingly easy to adjust the radius of your turns if your weight is centered over the skis. Don’t hesitate when you hit the steeps – be assertive, move your body down the hill and have fun.

You have spent a couple of seasons racing Tahoe League and are ready to make the transition to Far West/USSA races. Or, you are a first time Far West racer this season.
Here are six items to help you get started.

1. You will need a USSA and Far West membership, required to participate in a Far West race.

Find the drop down menu on the right hand side of the screen, “membership tools” and then choose “become a member.” You can choose to do an online registration (the fastest way to complete a membership) or you can download an application, fill it out and mail it in.

Please note that after October 15th any returning Far West and USSA membership is assessed a late fee. The first time you become a member there is no late involved.

2. Far West Skiing website, www.fwskiing.org. This is our local division’s website and is where you will find all of the information you need regarding race schedules, scholarships, upcoming events and articles. Please become familiar with this location, and cruise the site for a bit. You will want to locate the ‘competition’ tab so that you can go to ‘schedules’ and then click on your age class schedules page. (You will see the age class breakdown below)

Junior Racing

Age Classification is based on your age as of December 31, 2010

MID 20 and older (born 1991 and earlier) ** J3 13, 14 (born 1997-8)

J1 17, 18, 19 (born 1992-94) J4 11, 12 (born 1999-2000)

J2 15, 16 (born 1995-96) J5 10 & younger (born 2001 or later)

3. Sign up for your Age Class Email Hotline! This is the best way to receive an email regarding information for your age class racing group. You can subscribe to this email by clicking on your age class on the homepage of the Far West website. The Far West Office throws out emails for upcoming deadlines, scholarships, important announcements, etc.

4. Signing up for a race. This is different from Tahoe League as you will now sign yourself up for each race, unless otherwise noted by your program. You can do this through the online process or via a faxed in or mailed in entry. For a detail of how to sign up please see below. There are late fees assessed for registering late, so please take a look at the race announcement early!Online registration via www.alpinereg.org
1. Download the race announcement and waiver from the race schedules page on the Far West website. Read the announcement for date and registration details. The waiver must be faxed in and should be provided to your coach to take to the team captain’s meeting, too.
2. Go to www.alpinereg.com
3. Click on California Nevada
4. Choose the host mountain or club from the drop down menu.
5. Click on the “register now’ button.
6. Enter your athletes USSA number, beginning with the F (which stands for Far West)
7. If this is the correct athlete then please click ‘continue to register’, if not go back and retype
in the number.
8. Click on the state on the right hand side.
9. Click on the club/mountain – if that club or mountain does not show up then they are not
accepting online registration and you will need to follow the registration directions on the
race announcement.
10. Choose a race by adding it to the cart.
11. Complete steps 7-10 until you have added all race days to your cart. Follow directions
to check out.
12. FAX IN THE WAIVER TO THE RACE ORGANIZER AND PROVIDE IT TO THE COACHES
TO TAKE TO THE TEAM CAPTAIN’S MEETING JUST IN CASE.

Faxed/mailed in entries:1. Download the race announcement and waiver from the race schedules page on the Far West website. Read the announcement for date and registration details. The waiver must be faxed in and should be provided to your coach to take to the team captain’s meeting, too.
2. Download an alpine entry card at the top of the schedules page.
3. Fill out the information on the alpine entry card.
4. To pay for the race you can either create your own credit card authorization form, or place
it on the ‘date paid’ line, or send in a check. Please write legibly.
5. Fill out the waiver for this event location.
6. Fax/mail in the waiver, payment and the alpine entry card to the race organizer.

5. Confirm with the coaches! The most important thing that you as a parent and athlete can do is communicate with your coaches regarding your race and training schedules!

6. The Far West Office is always available for help. Have any questions? Call Lucy Schram, Far West Divisional Manager, in the Far West Office at 530.559.4130 or send an email to lucy@fwskiing.org

Boy or girl, we’ve all got bros that ski. Pant sagging, goggle gapping, and ski rapping—your bro-ski, man. You know who I’m talking about. It’s likely they give you a hard time for your ski strapping, goggle lens-packing, gate bashing style. And it’s likely you give them a hard time for—well, bro-ing. You love them for their different style, and their argyle one-piece pile.

Truth be told, we have a lot to learn from each other. To ski racers, technique is all discipline of the body. To free riders, technique is all creativity of the mind. Oftentimes, in the world of ski racing, the athlete gets very caught up attempting to travel past a gate the “correct” way. I’ve been a victim of this mindset, and I’ve watched kids ski stagnant trying to force technique. While there are basics to master, in the end, every skier has a different style, a different strength, and travels a different line.

Consider this common scenario: Your coach instructs you to move your hips forward in the transition. This piece of advice doesn’t mean move your hips forward like Johnny or Jackie; it means generate forward movement in your own way, to re-center over the ski in the transition, so that you can flex your ankle, bend the boot, and snap off a turn. Ted Ligety and Bode Miller have two different styles in the transition. You should, too.

Instead of lapping around, jumping back in the gate, and trying to do what you’re told in the blues and the reds, it’s time for the bro-ski in your head. Take the concept, and go make it unique to you. The best way to drive home an idea in ski racing is to master it in your free skiing.

Free skiing is the most underutilized tool in today’s ski racing environment. Programs pay a lot for training space, gates, and free skiing is, well, “free.” If you look to Europe, young ski racers are not allowed to touch a gate until they have mastered technique in their free skiing. These athletes are learning from the mountain; it is a natural course, using terrain as the turning pole, and mastering the arc without a pole.

If you’ve been slapping gates since you were 6, take a chance on free skiing. Opt for the free run over the training run (with the permission of your coach, of course). Put your hips on your tails for a few turns, move them so far forward you can’t initiate a turn, and find your own medium in the transition. You have to find the top of your own turn, your own way. It is, after all, your turn.